New All-Inclusive Playscape Breaks Ground in Greensburg
'Building Bridges Inclusion Park' is the first fully inclusive playscape in Indiana
Greensburg, IN - The City of Greensburg, Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA), the Decatur County Parks Department, and the Greensburg Inclusion Park Committee broke ground today on Indiana's first all-inclusive playscape. The Building Bridges Inclusion Park is a universally designed, sensory-rich environment that enables all children to develop physically, socially and emotionally. In an inclusive playscape, children of all abilities can interact with each other and do what all kids want to do; play.
The idea of establishing an inclusion park in Greensburg came to former Greensburg Police Chief and current Greensburg Community School Corporation Public Safety Director Brendan Bridges in 2019. Officer Bridges took his young son to Ohio to visit an inclusion park. Officer Bridges' son is nonverbal and autistic, and finding a way to release energy while keeping him entertained can be difficult. Throughout the visit to the park, Jaxon, Bridges' son, interacted with other children and played on the inclusive equipment for hours- which is not something that happens in a traditional style playground.
After returning from the park, Officer Bridges approached the City of Greensburg and then-mayor Dan Manus and requested to establish an inclusive playground in Greensburg. The project was formally announced in 2020 with further support from Mayor Joshua Marsh and the Greensburg City Council.
Inclusion parks offer communities a different kind of space of children- of all intellectual and physical abilities- to come together and play. The study of play shows us that playing helps children develop necessary skills, such as social and cognitive skills. Having a unique and safe place to allow children to grow and interact with each other can be a bright spot in a community.
"We are excited to see this project come to life," said Brendan Bridges. "Kids of all ages and abilities will have the opportunity to socially interact with others. Decatur County provides many services for children, adults, and families with disabilities, and this is just another amenity we can add that will support total inclusion."
Funds for the park were raised through a Patronicity matching grant campaign with CreatINg Spaces, part of the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority. Support and donations were also received from the City of Greensburg, Greensburg Redevelopment Commission, Decatur County, First Financial Bank, the Leona Hahn Charitable Trust, Centerpoint Energy, the Decatur County Community Foundation, Disability and Autism Services of Indiana (DASI), Greensburg Optimist Club, and Greensburg Rotary.
The Building Bridges Inclusion Park was also included in the Accelerate Rural Indiana (ARI) Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) project list, providing the park with $250,000. Indiana launched READI, a bold, transformational initiative that will dedicate $500 million in state appropriations to promote strategic investments that will make Indiana a magnet for talent and economic growth in 2021. ARI was awarded $20 million of READI funding, the highest per capita READI award in the state.
"The inclusion park has been a passion project of Officer Bridges for years," said Greensburg Mayor Joshua Marsh. "Building a park from the ground up is no easy feat, but the City of Greensburg and our residents are proud to show our support for this much needed feature in our community. We are happy to see this project move further along, and I am excited to see it be used for the benefit of our children of all abilities."
More information on the project can be found by visiting
greensburginclusionpark.org/ or by searching Decatur Co/Greensburg, In Inclusion Park on Facebook.
The Building Bridges Inclusion Park is expected to open to the public in the fall of 2023.
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Groundbreaking Group Photo
(L-R) Megan Miller, Miracle Playgrounds; Meagan Heber, Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority; Tami Wenning, Decatur County Community Foundation; Brendan Bridges, Founder of Park and Greensburg Community Schools Public Safety Director; Joshua Marsh, Greensburg Mayor; Teresa Kovacich, Decatur County Parks Department Director; Bryan Robbins, Greensburg/Decatur County Economic Development Corporation.
About READI
Launched by Gov. Holcomb and led by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), READI encourages regional collaboration and data-driven, long-term planning that will attract and retain talent in Indiana. The $500 million READI fund was passed by legislation during the 2021 session and was divided among 17 regions. Through READI, 17 regions across the state that represent all 92 counties are moving forward with projects and programs designed to enhance Indiana’s regions for current and future generations of Hoosiers. Collectively, the state’s $500 million investment is expected to yield an additional $9.86 billion public, private and nonprofit dollars invested (19.72:1 investment leverage ratio) in enhancing Indiana’s quality of life, quality of place and quality of opportunity.
